Before you sign for kosher meals for a group, check five things: who sets the standard, who supervises it on site, where the products come from, whether the venue has agreed to the kitchen, and what exactly the price includes. Most of the problems we see with groups start because one of these was "agreed verbally".
1. The standard: written down, not assumed
The level of kashrut is decided by the group's rabbi, not by the caterer. Write it into the contract: kosher, glatt or mehadrin; whether Chalav Yisrael, Pas Yisrael and Bishul Yisrael are required; whose supervision the group accepts. The word "kosher" without these details means little - each side can read it differently.
2. The mashgiach: who, appointed by whom, for how long
Ask who the mashgiach will be, who appointed him, and whether he is on site whenever the kitchen is working. Agree how he contacts the group's rabbi when a question comes up. Write down who pays for his work and who covers his room and meals - a small item, but often missing from offers.
3. Catering from a kitchen, or a kitchen on site
Catering from a kosher kitchen - meals arrive double wrapped and are served at the hotel. Good for short programs and where the kitchen cannot be koshered. A koshered kitchen on site - the team koshers the venue's kitchen under a mashgiach, brings its own equipment and cooks there. For camps, conferences and longer stays, only this model gives hot meals, Shabbat and mehadrin without compromise. How koshering works: koshering a kitchen for groups.
4. Products: what is available locally and what has to be brought in
Some certified products can be bought in Poland; others come from a kosher wholesaler - usually Chalav Yisrael, and often even basics like mayonnaise or tahini. Mayonnaise can be made on site, but that takes time and it does not always taste like the shop-bought kind. That order goes in well ahead: meat sometimes months before, the rest usually a few weeks before arrival. Ask where the meat, dairy and bread will come from. Pas Yisrael from a bakery rarely comes with written confirmation; the safe option is bread baked on site with the participation of a mashgiach.
5. The venue: kitchen agreement in writing
Do not assume the venue knows what kashrut is. In Poland few people do; a group manager at a large hotel once told us their kosher kitchen meant "no cream in the soup". If we cook at a venue the organizer has booked, we need the venue's written agreement: exclusive kitchen from two days before arrival, the right to kosher and lock it, who pays for the kitchen, power and water, and whether the venue provides staff to help. Without it, the argument about costs starts on day one. If the group stays in several places, agree each one separately.
6. Shabbat included, or extra?
Check whether the offer covers the three Shabbat meals, wine and grape juice for kiddush, challot, platas and urns, candles and havdalah, and an eruv if needed. These are often "optional". The details (warming food, the urn, who pours the wine) are for the group's rabbi - a good caterer asks about them without being prompted.
7. A menu built for the group, not from a template
Seniors eat differently from teenagers, and a group in the mountains differently from a conference. Before writing a menu, the caterer should ask about age, the daily rhythm, whether there is lunch, packed food for day trips, and diets. From our practice: groups that tour all day value a packing table after breakfast and a generous hot dinner most. The most common complaint on trips is monotony - the same breakfast every day.
8. Drinking water
For a large group, water is a real cost. Decide before the trip: good tap water at the venue, delivered bottles, or buying locally - and who pays for it.
9. The price: every item listed
Kosher catering costs more because it includes the mashgiach, koshering the kitchen, imported products, equipment and logistics. Ask for an offer that shows these items, and check the deadline for changing the number of guests at no cost.
Warning signs
- "We have our own kosher certificate" - a company that cooks cannot certify itself.
- "It's kosher because there's no pork", or "traditional Jewish cuisine".
- Nobody asks about your rabbi or your standard.
- The offer does not say whether there will be a mashgiach and under which rabbi he works.
- A promise of Pas Yisrael "from any bakery".
Checklist before you sign
- Standard in writing: kosher / glatt / mehadrin, Chalav, Pas, Bishul Yisrael, whose supervision.
- Mashgiach: who, appointed by whom, hours on site, who pays for work and stay.
- Model: catering or kitchen on site; the venue's written agreement.
- Sources of meat, dairy, bread; what is imported and when it is ordered.
- Shabbat: meals, kiddush, challot, platas, urns, candles, havdalah, eruv.
- Menu after questions about the group; packed food; diets.
- Drinking water and who pays for it.
- Itemized price and the deadline for changing numbers.
Frequently asked questions
Can a catering company issue its own kosher certificate?
No. Kashrut is confirmed by a rabbi or a kashrut organization, not by the company that cooks. If an offer mentions "our certificate", ask who signed it and whether your rabbi accepts it. SEBIR does not issue certificates - we work to the standard and under the supervision named by the group's rabbi.
Can we get Pas Yisrael from a bakery?
Rarely with written confirmation. If the group requires it, the safe option is bread baked on site with the participation of a mashgiach.
How far ahead should we book?
For a short stay a few weeks is usually enough. Imported products (such as Chalav Yisrael or meat) are ordered well ahead: meat sometimes months before, the rest usually a few weeks before arrival. For camps and large groups the bottleneck is a venue with a kitchen that can be koshered - count a year ahead.
Why does kosher catering cost more?
Because the price includes things ordinary catering does not: the mashgiach, koshering the kitchen, imported certified products, separate equipment and logistics. A good offer lists these separately.
SEBIR provides kosher meals for groups in Poland and Europe - in the venue's koshered kitchen or from a kosher kitchen, to the standard set by the group's rabbi, with a mashgiach on site.
Prepared by the SEBIR team. Since 2023 we have been running kosher kitchens and Shabbat for Jewish groups in Poland and Europe. Last updated: October 2026. If something here is out of date, write to info@sebir.pl - we will check and correct it.